The present invention relates to the discovery, identification, and characterization of novel human polynucleotides encoding proteins that share sequence similarity with animal kinases. The invention encompasses the described animals that either lack or over express the disclosed sequences, antagonists and agonists of the proteins, and other compounds that modulate the expression or activity of the proteins encoded by the disclosed genes that can be used for diagnosis, drug screening, clinical trial monitoring and the treatment of physiological disorders.
Kinases mediate phosphorylation of a wide variety of proteins and compounds in the cell. Along with phosphatases, kinases are involved in a range of regulatory pathways. Given the physiological importance of kinases, they have been subject to intense scrutiny and are proven drug targets.
The present invention relates to the discovery, identification, and characterization of nucleotides that encode novel human proteins, and the corresponding amino acid sequences of these proteins. The novel human proteins (NHPs) described for the first time herein share structural similarity with animal kinases, including, but not limited to calcium/calmodulin-dependant protein kinases and serine/threonine protein kinases. As such, the novel polynucleotides encode a novel kinase family having homologues and orthologs across a range of phyla and species.
The novel human polynucleotides described herein, encode open reading frames (ORFs) encoding proteins of 385 or 356 amino acids in length (see SEQ ID NOS: 2 and 4 respectively).
The invention also encompasses agonists and antagonists of the described NHPs, including small molecules, large molecules, mutant NHPs, or portions thereof that compete with native NHPs, NHP peptides, and antibodies, as well as nucleotide sequences that can be used to inhibit the expression of the described NHPs (e.g., antisense and ribozyme molecules, and gene or regulatory sequence replacement constructs) or to enhance the expression of the described NHP polynucleotides (e.g., expression constructs that place the described sequence under the control of a strong promoter system). The present invention also includes both transgenic animals that express a NHP transgene, and NHP xe2x80x9cknock-outsxe2x80x9d (which can be conditional) that do not express a functional NHP.
Also encompassed by the present invention are novel protein constructs engineered in such a way that they facilitate transport of the NHP to the target site, to the desired organ, across the cell membrane and/or to the nucleus where the NHP can exert its function activity. This goal may be achieved by coupling of the NHP to a cytokine or other ligand that would direct the NHP to the target organ and facilitate receptor mediated transport across the membrane into the cytosol. Conjugation of NHPs to antibody molecules or their Fab fragments could be used to target cells bearing a particular epitope. Attaching the appropriate signal sequence to the NHP would also transport the NHP to the desired location within the cell. Alternatively targeting of NHP or its nucleic acid sequence might be achieved using liposome or lipid complex based delivery systems. Such technologies are described in Liposomes: A Practical Approach, R. R. C. New, Ed., Oxford University Press, New York and in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,594,595, 5,459,127, 5,948,767 and 6,110,490 and their respective disclosures which are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety.
Further, the present invention also relates to processes for identifying compounds that modulate, i.e., act as agonists or antagonists, of NHP expression and/or NHP product activity that utilize purified preparations of the described NHPs and/or NHP product, or cells expressing the same. Such compounds can be used as therapeutic agents for the treatment of any of a wide variety of symptoms associated with biological disorders or imbalances.